The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is a regional association composed of the 10 countries in Southeast Asia—Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar (Burma), the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam. These countries are home to a population of 600 million people, or almost 9 percent of the world’s population. As a single economic block, its combined nominal GDP of USD 2 trillion ranks ninth in the world. Of this year’s 729 responses to The Conference Board CEO Challenge survey, 183 are from the ASEAN region. While CEOs within the ASEAN community may share similar challenges with their global peers, they are often focusing on a unique set of strategies that reflects the excitement and uncertainty generated by the continuing integration of ASEAN as an economic community.

As part of the 2013 edition of The Conference Board CEO Challenge survey, The Conference Board and its regional partners asked CEOs of companies operating within ASEAN to identify what they expect to be their top-five challenges stemming from the economic integration and implementation of the ASEAN Economic Community accords in 2015.